The State Duma spoke about the importance of training specialists in high schools who are in demand in the market

Russian state and commercial universities should train specialists who are in demand in the labor market. Ekaterina Kharchenko, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Science and Higher Education, told Izvestia on July 23, commenting on the draft law on the regulation of admission to paid education from 2026.

According to her, the regulation of the threshold for paid admission figures existed before that, but in a more flexible and lenient version.

"In recent years, all universities have submitted planned figures, including commercial admission, it was just not controlled, as there was no clear position in the law. But starting next year, the planned figures that will be agreed upon by the founders — and let me remind you, there are 18 federal executive authorities, sectoral ones that will control the activities of universities — will monitor the implementation of this plan," the deputy noted.

Kharchenko stressed that there would be no reduction in recruitment for economists, lawyers and other humanitarian specialties — we are talking about the average score of the Unified State Exam, about the fact that there would be a competition even for commercial training.

"We are talking about employment, because we must train specialists who are in demand in the labor market. Given the imbalance between the labor market and the education system, we cannot afford to train specialists who are not in demand on the market," she said.

Kharchenko added that in this regard, the Ministry of Education and Science, together with the government of the Russian Federation, is working on a regulatory framework. According to her, by the end of 2025, a cabinet decision is expected with criteria on which universities will apply for the maximum number of paid admission places. In addition, she stressed that the changes primarily concern the quality of education, not restrictions.

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What do the authorities focus on when drafting it and how will it help applicants choose an educational institution?

Earlier, on May 14, Kharchenko called the synchronization of the education system and the demands of the labor market the main goal of the draft law on the regulation of admission to paid education in universities. According to her, the criteria system will be coordinated with regional authorities and relevant ministries, and initial proposals will be formed by higher education institutions.

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